Kim Gregory
Professor Flack
British Literature
12-12-2012
Supernatural
in Early British Literature
Supernatural events or beliefs
paralleled the Catholic beliefs that were present during the Twelfth to
Seventeenth Century. Supernatural
or folk lore was present and very prevalent in early British Literature. People used different beliefs to escape
conflict in their lives but the beliefs in folklore and religion were quite
similar. One popular method of escaping
the daily hardships of life was through religion. Another popular outlet was listening to the
stories of the supernatural.
Supernatural tales were used in the Twelfth Century as an explanation of
nature, the changes of seasons or other natural occurrences. Many believed religion influenced the
commoners through the Twelfth through the Seventeenth Centuries, but the tales
of folk lore were just as influential during this time. Folklore stories have stayed consistent, and
give people of present day an idea of English commoners’ lives and
hardships. Although society viewed the
tales as fiction, they were an outlet from hardships or religious repression
and a piece of history. Science, which
has come a long way in explaining what was considered unexplainable, is more
prevalent in present times. Today, those
superstitions are dismissed as old wives’ tales. The definition of supernatural is “of or
relating to an order of existence beyond the visible observable universe;
especially: of or relating to God or a god, demigod, spirit, or devil”( "Supernatural - Definition and More from the Free
Merriam-Webster Dictionary." Dictionary and Thesaurus - Merriam-Webster
Online. Web.
<http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supernatural>.) It was common practice to use supernatural phenomenon
to escape from many tragedies, e.g. plagues, wars, government, and religious
oppression, occurring from the Twelfth to Seventeenth Centuries. Using supernatural characters in the early
centuries in England also helped the bards, poets, and playwrights portray and
their political or spiritual beliefs. These
supernatural characters would allow them to express themselves without having
to worry about the restrictions and censorship the Monarchy placed on their
work. Using events or creatures that
people do not believe exist allowed the writers to express themselves more
freely because the stories were considered fiction and not an attack on the Crown.
In an article titled, “Recording Superstition in Early
Modern Britain: The Origins of Folklore”
by Alexandra Walsham the author explains how some superstitions came about,
what their importance to the society was at the time, and why the tales have
stood the test of time. During this time
period, the believers were very passionate about passing on the folklore of their
village, Alexandra Walsham states “the task of recording ‘superstitions’ was
nothing less than an intellectual and cultural obsession” (178). Walsham also refers to supernatural
occurrences being the explanation of the weather and seasons changing, the
birth of children, death of the old, and sickness. Today we have a better understanding of these
things because of the use of science and the advancing technology.
Because
of the changes and evolving religious beliefs that were plaguing England during
the Twelfth century and beyond, England,
which was attempting to hold on to old Catholic beliefs, viewed superstition as
paganism (or a form of devil worship). The belief of devil worship has persisted throughout
modern and more educated times. Folklore,
superstitions, and supernatural beliefs were just a way of common folks, who
were illiterate, to pass on “the very beliefs and customs they so lovingly see
to preserve in the protective aspic of writing and print” (181). This article gives an idea of why people
chose to integrate fictional literature into their lives, why this supernatural
literature was used and what it detailed about their lives and culture. Those who passed on this folklore were
passing on integral information about their lives, just as the religious were
passing on their beliefs in their bibles.
Disagreement
between King Henry VIII’s established Church of England and the Protestants regarding
some the religious practices caused religious tension in England. Alexandra Walsham described “second and third
generation Protestants of the hotter sort revived these arguments in their
efforts to purge the Church of England of remaining popish ceremonies and
persuade society at large to abandon immoral pastimes and heathen origin” (184).
The Church of England urged the Protestants to practice teachings from
the Catholic Church; however, the Protestants believed those teachings,
including drinking of the wine and taking of the sacraments, which were symbols
of Jesus’ blood and body, were too similar to Pagan rituals of sacrifice.
The
poem Beowulf is a written example
during this time in England where supernatural literature was commonplace. In Beowulf
the occurrences of supernatural themes were not subtle. The poem refers to the villain Grendel as a
supernatural being by stating that “Grendel was the name of this grim demon,
/haunting the marches, […] in misery among the banished monsters, / Cain’s clan
whom the Creator has outlawed / and condemned as outcasts. […] and out of the curse of his exile there
sprang /ogres, and elves and evil phantoms/ and the giants too who strove with
god. ( 44 102-113) Grendel, who considered an outcast and an evil
being and a genetic tie to Cain, who is the reason for all evil, was not
welcomed into other villages. This is an
example of how supernatural folklore and religious stories run parallel and
both influenced lives.
Another poem that emphasizes the
occurrences supernatural beings is Lanval. This poem is a lais and written in the 12th Century England. Although this is slightly out of the time period, I think it
is the precursor to what occurred later. This supernatural poem is about a fairy queen.
This beautifully perfect fairy queen has magical
powers and can appear whenever she desires.
She has taken interest in the selfless and brave knight Lanval. In this poem, the fairy queen spoke this oath
to Lanval:
When you want to talk to me
there is no
place you can think of
where a man
might have his mistress
without reproach
or shame,
that I shall not
be there with you
to satisfy all
your desires.
No man but you
will see me or hear my words. (157 163-170)
When Queen Guinevere,
who was married to the mythological King Arthur, tried to seduce Lanval, she
was rejected. The Queen was appalled and
demanded to know why her advances were not accepted. Lanval told her that he was in love with
another, who was more beautiful. Queen
Guinevere imprisoned Lanval until the fairy queen saved him. Lanval details the cultural caste system in place in
the 12th Century. Lanval was a knight and subject of the Queen,
he should have been happy to bed her, but chose to ignore his Queen’s wishes
for the true love of his Fairy Queen. At a time when royal marriages were
arranged and commoners wed for land and convenience, individual feelings and
desires were not addressed. Not only was
Lanval a story with supernatural
occurrences, but also a fairy tale with a moral message to have hope for true
love which was imbedded in this tale.
In the Wife of Bath,
the knight, who is searching for what a woman desires, receives his answers
from an old ugly witch. As payment for
the answer, the old witch demands the knight marry her, but gives him the
option of being wed to a beautiful but unfaithful young woman on a faithful but
ugly old woman. The knight wisely
remembered what a woman desires, the right to choose, and leaves the decision
to his wife, the witch. In return, she
gave him what he most desired, and transformed into a young, beautiful, and faithful
woman. Before the witch transformed, she
spoke these words to her knight:
For by my trouthe, I wol be to you
bothe-
This is to sayn,
ye, bothe fair and good.
I pray to God
that I mote serven wood.
But I to you be
al so good and trewe
As evere was wif
sin that the world was newe.
And but I be
tomorn as fair to seene
As any lady,
emperisse, or queene, (Wife of Bath Tale p3091246-52)
The
wife tells the knight that she will use her magic to alter her appearance to
him because he made the correct choice.
This also shows one of the many supernatural occurrences in this
tale. In the Wife of Bath, the wife had promised her new husband, the knight
that she would appeal to him physically because of his choice to let her choose
but also she would be faithful. Again,
because of magic she was able to alter her old woman appearance.
In
the Pardoner’s Prologue and Tale,
written by Geoffrey Chaucer, three greedy men were looking for death in order
to defeat him. These greedy men were
directed to an old oak tree by an old man who was also looking for death,
instead of finding death though the three greedy men found a treasure. In this tale that has magical references,
Geoffrey Chaucer uses these references to convey moral values, such as in the Pardoners Prologue and Tale. In this quote, the greed of the three men is
laced with the tale of death, as a person, twisted in a supernatural theme that
has moralistic undertone,
“Til
he cam to that tree, and ther they founde
Of florins fine
of gold ycoined rounde
Wel niegh an
eighte bushels as hem thoughte-
Ne lenger thanne
after Deeth they soughte,
But eech of hem
so glad was of the sighte,
For that the
florins been so faire and brighte,
That down the
sette hem by this precious hoord.” (The
Pardoner’s Prologue and Tale P.321 480-487)
After the three greedy men were side tracked by the treasure,
they forgot they sought Death. In a
supernaturally ironic way because of their greed and trying to plot against
each other, they found death one by g one by killing each other. The treasure was magical and tested those men
who did not have a true heart and was run by greed. In this tale, Chaucer has a moral undertone
to the story. He is telling you by the
story to stay on the path of God, do not smite others, try not to be greedy,
and you will find death in your own time when God is ready to have you join
Him. In The Pardoner’s Tale the appearance of the gold made the greedy men
forget about seeking death.
Finally, in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the whole tale revolves around
supernatural events as the story involved the mythical character King
Arthur. In Sir Gawain a stranger comes to King Arthur’s court. He is very tall and handsome and possesses a
supernatural strength and he is completely Green! The author explains his appearance as:
In fact in all features he was
finely formed
It seemed.
Amazement seized
their minds,
No soul had ever
seen
A knight of such
a kind-
Entirely emerald
green.” ( 189 145-150.)
In Sir Gawain
and the Green Knight, the fact that the Knight was Green was a supernatural
phenomenon. The quote describes all the
Knights’ physical qualities’ and leaves the fact that the Knight is green as a
powerful revelation to tie the whole thing together and understand the whole
allure of the Green Knight. The tale of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight was a
supernatural tale because the knight was green, but also it was a tale of
morals and a bit of insight to how life at court was lived. Despite the magical under tone, this tale
paints a mental picture of the inner workings of the court and the social
status of the knights and their interaction with their king. So despite that the knight was green it is a
tale of history and an example of life during this time.
In
each of these quotes and tales, they all have supernatural existence, but all
have a message of morals also. Instead
of just the mundane preaching of the church and constant dictating by the
church and monarchy; these author’s chose to write fictional stories with supernatural
characters or characteristics to give the reader some entertainment as well as
a dose of morality. In addition, the
writer, by leaving the story to the imagination gives the reader the right to
choose what he or she believed and how each individual person translated the
moral message.
All
of these tales of the supernatural, fables, and unexplained occurrences have
been passed down through the generations.
These tales were a way of explaining the occurrences in life that were unexplainable
even though today with the work of technology, these works hold no bearing on
life other than entertainment and are just dismissed as fairy tales or old
wives tales. The fact that remains is
these tales are a part of history and gives the modern world insight and very
detailed look at life and inner workings in the political and religious world
as well and the way the commoners perceived the hierarchy of the times.
CITATIONS
"Supernatural
- Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary." Dictionary
and Thesaurus - Merriam-Webster Online. Web.
<http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supernatural>.
Walsham,
Alexandra. "Recording Superstition in Early Modern Britain: The Origins of
Folklore." Past and Present. (2008): 178-206.
Web.<http://ezproxy.mvc.edu:2074/ehost/detail?vid=5&hid=12&sid=eedc0d50-a31a-43ab-bc6d-376d1971c709%40sessionmgr13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=34705894>.
Alfred
, David and James Simpson. "The Middle Ages." The Norton Anthology
English Literature. Ninth. A. New York: WW Norton & Company, 1962.
36-108. Print.
Deidre
Shauna, Lynch and Jack Stillinger. "Romance." The Norton Anthology
English Literature. Ninth. A. New York: WW Norton , 1962. 154-167. Print.
Alfred,
David and James Simpson. "Middle English Literature in the 14th & 15th
Centuries." The Norton Anthology English Literature. Ninth. A. New
York: WW Norton, 1962. 310-323. Print.
Alfred,
David and James Simpson. "Middle English Literature in the 14th & 15th
Centuries." The Norton Anthology English Literature. Ninth. A. New
York: WW Norton, 1962. 282-309. Print.
Alfred,
David and James Simpson. "Middle English Literature in the 14th & 15th
Centuries." The Norton Anthology English Literature. Ninth. A. New
York: WW Norton, 1962. 183-237. Print.
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